Drew Beringer
04/19/06, 04:12 PM
VERSUS THE MIRROR - Home
Versus The Mirror doesn't want to sound like your typical “metalcore” outfit. In this day and age of bands using Pro-Tools, computers, and high tech recording equipment, VTM said no thanks to that. Instead, their Equal Vision debut record, Home, was recorded from analog to 2” tape and tracked with vintage gear. With the help of producer Bob Hoag (The Bled, The Format), Versus The Mirror was able to achieve the sound they wanted, which is an album that sounds just like their live show. With the accomplishment of that, this Tucson, Arizona quintet (vocalist Davey Seibold, guitarists Gabe Borquez and Kevin Ryan, bassist Brad Murray, and drummer Shane Ray) has released a solid album that is slightly better than most albums in this genre.
“Birthed By Architecture” starts off the album with a deep, distant bass drum and a menacing guitar riff, which leads into Ray’s staccato-like drumming colliding with Borquez and Ryan’s guitars. Seibold’s unforgiving voice then kicks in, which is very reminiscent of The Bled’s James Munoz. “Smoke It To The Rope,” which first appeared on VTM EP, follows the opener with a hard hitting intro and Seibold belting out “Can you feel/my legs begin to shake?/just as the ether/that is underneath these sheets.” The rhythm of Ray and Murray is key in this song. “Barracuda Capital Of The World” has fine guitar work, and for being only 19, Seibold is pretty damn good at the screaming thing, and this song proves it. “Life As A Criminal” is my favorite song on the album. Dark and heavy, it is the definite highlight of the album and shows how good this band can become. The lyrics are also very thought-provoking on this track, with an example being, “If Jesus was born in a race of age/would a noose of thorns be more fitting?/On which day did God create this awful violence that I see?” After a short instrumental, the album picks up with “Out Of Context,” a fast track that could be mistaken for an Underoath song, but this isn’t a bad thing. “Boy Gets What He Wants” (another song from the EP) is another favorite of mine, as melody and brutality fuse into one kickass song. The breakdown of this song is great, as it has a sense of urgency with Seibold letting it out with a rousing line of “Bottoms up you fuckers/this is your last release/your libations are undead to me.” The album closes with the frantic “(I Am) The Master Of Gravity.” Full of persistence and viciousness, the emotion of this song isn’t coming in a pretty package for you, it’s gonna come dirty and punch you in the face. It’s a fine closer for this vigorous album.
Home is a 12-track voyage into a realm of the uncleanness of metalcore. While it is nothing amazing and lacks on staying power, it is still a solid release from a band that is only in their early twenties. The potential is there, and with the help of being on a superb label like Equal Vision, Versus The Mirror isn’t that far from making something really special. I highly recommend this album to fans of Underoath and The Bled. So make yourself at Home with Versus The Mirror, as they are on the right path to success and a fresh breath in an over saturated genre.
Tracklisting:
1. Birthed By Architecture
2. Smoke It To The Rope
3. Barracuda Capital Of The World
4. Great White Zombie
5. Life As A Criminal
6. The Sound Asleep
7. Out Of Context
8. Let's Get Alone
9. Boy Gets What He Wants
10. Fear Will Keep Them In Line
11. Home
12. (I Am) The Master Of Gravity
Versus The Mirror are:
Davey Seibold - vocals
Gabe Borquez - guitar
Kevin Ryan - guitar
Brad Murray - bass
Shane Ray - drums
Release Date: April 18, 2006
Record Label: Equal Vision Records (http://www.equalvision.com)
Official Website (http://www.versusthemirror.net); Official Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/versusthemirror); AP Artist Profile (http://www.absolutepunk.net/artists/showlink.php?do=showdetails&l=2327&catid=2<r=V)
Versus The Mirror doesn't want to sound like your typical “metalcore” outfit. In this day and age of bands using Pro-Tools, computers, and high tech recording equipment, VTM said no thanks to that. Instead, their Equal Vision debut record, Home, was recorded from analog to 2” tape and tracked with vintage gear. With the help of producer Bob Hoag (The Bled, The Format), Versus The Mirror was able to achieve the sound they wanted, which is an album that sounds just like their live show. With the accomplishment of that, this Tucson, Arizona quintet (vocalist Davey Seibold, guitarists Gabe Borquez and Kevin Ryan, bassist Brad Murray, and drummer Shane Ray) has released a solid album that is slightly better than most albums in this genre.
“Birthed By Architecture” starts off the album with a deep, distant bass drum and a menacing guitar riff, which leads into Ray’s staccato-like drumming colliding with Borquez and Ryan’s guitars. Seibold’s unforgiving voice then kicks in, which is very reminiscent of The Bled’s James Munoz. “Smoke It To The Rope,” which first appeared on VTM EP, follows the opener with a hard hitting intro and Seibold belting out “Can you feel/my legs begin to shake?/just as the ether/that is underneath these sheets.” The rhythm of Ray and Murray is key in this song. “Barracuda Capital Of The World” has fine guitar work, and for being only 19, Seibold is pretty damn good at the screaming thing, and this song proves it. “Life As A Criminal” is my favorite song on the album. Dark and heavy, it is the definite highlight of the album and shows how good this band can become. The lyrics are also very thought-provoking on this track, with an example being, “If Jesus was born in a race of age/would a noose of thorns be more fitting?/On which day did God create this awful violence that I see?” After a short instrumental, the album picks up with “Out Of Context,” a fast track that could be mistaken for an Underoath song, but this isn’t a bad thing. “Boy Gets What He Wants” (another song from the EP) is another favorite of mine, as melody and brutality fuse into one kickass song. The breakdown of this song is great, as it has a sense of urgency with Seibold letting it out with a rousing line of “Bottoms up you fuckers/this is your last release/your libations are undead to me.” The album closes with the frantic “(I Am) The Master Of Gravity.” Full of persistence and viciousness, the emotion of this song isn’t coming in a pretty package for you, it’s gonna come dirty and punch you in the face. It’s a fine closer for this vigorous album.
Home is a 12-track voyage into a realm of the uncleanness of metalcore. While it is nothing amazing and lacks on staying power, it is still a solid release from a band that is only in their early twenties. The potential is there, and with the help of being on a superb label like Equal Vision, Versus The Mirror isn’t that far from making something really special. I highly recommend this album to fans of Underoath and The Bled. So make yourself at Home with Versus The Mirror, as they are on the right path to success and a fresh breath in an over saturated genre.
Tracklisting:
1. Birthed By Architecture
2. Smoke It To The Rope
3. Barracuda Capital Of The World
4. Great White Zombie
5. Life As A Criminal
6. The Sound Asleep
7. Out Of Context
8. Let's Get Alone
9. Boy Gets What He Wants
10. Fear Will Keep Them In Line
11. Home
12. (I Am) The Master Of Gravity
Versus The Mirror are:
Davey Seibold - vocals
Gabe Borquez - guitar
Kevin Ryan - guitar
Brad Murray - bass
Shane Ray - drums
Release Date: April 18, 2006
Record Label: Equal Vision Records (http://www.equalvision.com)
Official Website (http://www.versusthemirror.net); Official Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/versusthemirror); AP Artist Profile (http://www.absolutepunk.net/artists/showlink.php?do=showdetails&l=2327&catid=2<r=V)